Plans moving forward for new three-ring horse training facility

The next step is to get permits from the Coastal Commission and Orange County.After years of no progress, plans are finally moving forward for a three-ring horse training facility to serve the equestrian community of Santa Ana Heights.

The next step is to get permits from the Coastal Commission and Orange County, with groundbreaking potentially as soon as January, said Jayne Jones, president of the Back Bay Equestrians.

Riders already use the area, which is off Mesa Drive near the Peter and Mary Muth Interpretive Center, for training. The arenas will fence in the area, making it safer, Jones said.

The structures will be simple -- two fenced, graded arenas for basic riding and practicing dressage, in which the rider guides the horse to perform complex movements; and a “round pen” for exercising horses.

“We’re going to be able to accommodate really every kind of horse and all levels of riders,” said Newport Beach City Councilwoman Leslie Daigle, who represents Santa Ana Heights.

The arena facilities will cost about $240,000, mostly for grading the site. The money will come from Santa Ana Heights Redevelopment Agency funds, Jones said.

Jones said between 110 and 150 horses are kept by Santa Ana Heights residents. Some ride trails in the area; others show horses; and for some children, riding is an after-school sport, she said.

Local equestrians have been working on getting the arenas for 10 years or more, she said.

The Coastal Commission is likely to approve the permit because it favors recreation projects that offer public access, Newport Beach Assistant City Manager Dave Kiff said. The arenas have to be fairly basic because the county may need to take them down for access to a nearby flood control channel, he said.

Jones said she hopes to get the necessary permits for the arenas by mid-December.

Equestrians are excited to have a facility in their own community, Daigle said.

“It’s unique to Newport Beach, and it’ll save parents a trip to Anaheim Hills or San Juan Capistrano,” she said.